Andries Botha Exhibits at the Ammazulu Sculpture Garden

... it takes everything

... within the geography of desire and the struggle for home, to make, to hold, to feel, to see, to be, to imagine, to respond, to become and to leave.

It is believed that wisdom is the capacity to hold the two contradictory ideas of hope and despair in one's mind simultaneously; this wisdom is expressed as sculpture, installation and concept. There is a stillness in the magnitude and elegance of committing a life to work; to create.

Botha's "menswees", his conscience and his struggle for "ukuzizwa usekhaya" (isiZulu for belonging) present us with the haunting pursuit for truth and beauty through the duality of indigenous nature and classical form.

The works are cultural and historical documents produced in South Africa that reflect on the grace and trauma of our humanity. The expansive themes traverse binaries such as: power and helplessness; gender and violence; migration, identity and belonging; and our mark on the environment.

This body of work helps one understand the complex, yet inspiring, human journey that we have lived through in the last 40 years in South Africa.

Curated by Janine Zagel and Jessica Bothma
sSeptember 2020

History of Monuments

1997

Lithographic aluminium plates, mild steel, galvanised wire, resin, lead, electronic components.

Genesis, Genesis, Jesus ...

1989

Leadwood, thatching grass, steel.

Empty Spaces

2008

Digital images printed on diaphanous paper, backed with interfacing and sewn together to form a vertical piece. Polyester resin baggage cast from found objects (bags and suitcases, matt black in colour).

Loxodonta Africana

2011

Painted polyester resin, perspex, electronic componenets.

Rhino Burning

2016

Painted galvanised sheet metal, galvanised steel, mild steel, cable ties.

Afrikaner Circa 2014

2014

Acrylic on canvas, landscape in the manner of Pierneef; Material One; mild steel; 3D printed figure in Supawood; artificial landscape turf, electronic components.

Embarkation

1995

Polypropylene rope, wattle (exotic tree), galvanised sheeting, plastic sheeting, canvas, stainless steel mesh, mild steel, found objects, resin, lead, copper coating.

(in)Somnium: van stof en saad en land

2011

Rubber coated polyester resin